Mabel Anderson, 92, died Saturday, September 17, 2011 at Thief River Care Center, Thief River Falls, MN.

Funeral services will be 10:30 AM, Thursday, September 22, 2011at the Evangelical Covenant Church, Thief River Falls, MN with Rev. Bert Foster officiating.  Burial will be held at Oak Grove Cemetery, Newfolden.

Visitation will be 4-7 PM, Wednesday, September 21, 2011 at Johnson Funeral Service in Thief River Falls, MN with a Prayer Service at 7 PM.  Visitation will also be held for one hour prior to the funeral at the church.

Vanja Mabel Franson was born on October 20, 1918 in Viking, MN the daughter of Charlie and Gerda (Carlson) Franson.  She attended elementary school in Viking and graduated from high school in Newfolden, MN.  Following school, Mabel worked for various families in the Newfolden and Thief River Falls, MN area.

Mabel was united in marriage to Marvin Anderson on December 24, 1941 in Inglewood, CA.  To this union five children were born, Gwen, Keith, Karen, Cheryl & Bryan.  They lived in California until after World War II.  They then moved back to Thief River Falls, where they resided until 1957, when they moved to Benson, MN and owned a grocery store.  In 1960, they moved back to Thief River Falls, where they continued to reside.

Mabels family was her pride and joy.  She truly loved and cherished her family.  Even though she had all of her kids around, Mabel home was always open to people; she was a gem as far as hospitality.  She entertained literally hundreds of people over the years and always fed them well.

It was such a joy when Mabels family would sing at various church and school functions.  It truly touched her heart.

Mabel has been a member of the Evangelical Covenant Church in Thief River Falls since the 1940s.  She worked for a time as the Church Custodian and was very active throughout her years.  Mabel enjoyed sewing and made many quilts for her grandchildren and great-grandchildren; she won many ribbons for her entries at the Pennington County Fair.

She is survived by her children, Gwen (Rev. Don) Johnson of Escondido, CA, Keith (Shirley) Anderson of Grand Forks, ND, Karen (Rev. Nathan) Langager of Escanaba, MI, Cheryl (Joseph) Brown of Romulus, MI, Bryan (Lori) Anderson of Lino Lakes, MN; grandchildren, Jeffrey, Timothy, Gregory, Ryan, Scott, Christopher, Mark, Alan, Aaron, Andrew, Kristin, Anthony, Austin, Joseph, Joshua, Jasmine, Jessica, Jada, Jacob & Jordan; 21 great-grandchildren; and many other relatives and friends.

Mabel was preceded in death by her husband, Marvin in 1986; her parents; brothers, Carl, Victor, Thorvald; and sister, Ethel Fluge.